


Sneaking About

by AnorOmnis



Series: Their Unconquerable Souls [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Marauders, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Marauders Friendship (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:08:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23330656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnorOmnis/pseuds/AnorOmnis
Summary: Peter is messing about with the Invisibility Cloak when he sees James and Sirius acting suspiciously.Set shortly after the Prank. Peter POV but primarily a James-Sirius friendship fic.
Series: Their Unconquerable Souls [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1756231
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	Sneaking About

The nice thing about having a best friend with an Invisibility Cloak and a generous heart, Peter mused, was not, as some people might have guessed, the ability to pull pranks, avoid Filch, or peek at girls (Although there was a definite merit to the latter – he could still feel the familiar heat rising up his neck and the involuntary crossing of his legs whenever he replayed that particular memory of following Hestia Jones to the Prefect’s bathroom.)

No, the real merit of the situation was the ability to follow his friends about and figure out what they were up to, and what they were feeling. Peter was already naturally observant – he picked up things about other people that the rest of the Marauders could not. Hadn’t it been him, after all, who had first realized that Remus wasn’t just reclusive, but was sitting on a secret larger than they could have imagined? And of course, lest anyone forget, he had been the first to pick up on James’ attractions to a certain Ms Evans. 

He had read it in their faces, their postures, their words – the Marauders were a particularly easy bunch to read – even Remus, studious and quiet introvert that he was, had all the subtlety of a five year old attempting to bluff at cards. James claimed to love it, saying often that it was a beautiful truth that they were all such good friends that they couldn’t keep secrets from each other for long.

James was quite wrong. For all that they were easy to read, the Marauders were still human. And human beings could always keep some things secret. Not the things that they wanted to keep secret, Peter had realized long ago. No, if that had been the case, he would never have learned that Professor McGonagall had suffered heartbreak and given up on love at a young age. The tremors in her voice when she had first taught them of Aziz al-Yami, the wizard who had produced the first successful human to human transfiguration, hoping to be able to replace the wife he had lost in childbirth – those tremors had been real, and definitely not intentional. 

It just went to show – if you tried to hide something too hard, you couldn’t. Hence James’ inability to hide his true feelings for Lily, Remus’ to conceal his lupine nature, and Sirius’ to disguise how badly he wanted to be loved by his parents.

But you could always hide the subtler things – the ones you didn’t care as much about. In a sense, Peter mused, you were already hiding them from yourself. Perhaps that was why it was so easy to hide them from your friends. Sirius’ recent actions, after all, had shocked them all. Not one of them had thought him capable of murder.

Peter’s deep musings into the workings of the human mind, safe within the confines of the Invisibility Cloak in a corner of the Common Room, were interrupted as he saw Sirius standing up from his now-usual solitary perch by the fire. He was going to go up to the dorm now. The timing was ideal – Remus was in Herbology, James on the pitch, and, of course, Sirius had never cared to wonder where he would be. The perfect time for Sirius to head upward and gather his belongings for the next class. All quite according to schedule.

Nodding in satisfaction, Peter turned his attention back to the real reason he had first donned the Cloak, and continued his detailed examination of Mary Macdonald’s impressive cleavage. It really was wonderful. His mind dozed off into blissful fantasy.

The portraithole opened, and James Potter walked in, shiftily gazing from left to right. Peter reluctantly drew his gaze from Mary’s chest, his interest piqued. This was not according to schedule. What was going on?

James made his way slowly towards the boy’s dormitories, advancing with a distinct unease in his gait. The silly sod was clearly trying to be subtle and pass unnoticed, but Prongs, bless his guileless heart, was by far the least subtle of the Marauders. In trying to go unnoticed, he looked very much like a bad parody of someone imitating the swooshing movement of a Dementor. If he tried to be subtle very much longer, the whole castle would know that he was going back to the dorms.

Peter bid Mary and her assets a silent farewell with a two-finger salute, and silently followed his wiry haired friend up the stairs. There was something of interest to observe here.

At the door to the dorm, James abandoned his subtleties. Drawing his shoulders together, he took a deep breath and flung open the door, walking in accompanied by his usual strut and crooked smirk.

“Pa-ad-foot,” he stretched the nickname out tunefully.

“P- James! What are –,” Sirius gaped. “Aren’t you supposed to be practicing?”

“Quite right, quite right.” James nodded agreeably. “I’m skiving off practice today.”

You could have heard a needle hit the ground in the ensuing silence, Peter thought.

“Skiving – you never miss – sorry, where’s James Potter, and what have you done with him?” Sirius’ kneejerk spluttering was quickly replaced by befuddled smile. He shook his head in an amused fashion, looking back up at James, waiting for the punchline.

“Yup – skiving. I figured I’d catch you in the act.”

“The act? What, are we in an Auror Adams book now?”

“It’s just the two of us in here,” James shrugged nonchalantly, “you can probably stop deflecting now.”

“Deflecting? From the incredibly suspicious activity of preparing for Arithmancy? It appears you’ve caught me very much red handed, Mr. Potter.” He flashed an easy smile. But, Peter mused, there was something wrong about it – it was much too easy.

James saw it too, clearly. He was squeezing his left hand into a fist. “Very much so, Mr. Black. Perhaps we can take my victory in the Mysterious Affair of the Arithmancy Preparation and have a celebration – something along the lines of a confession from one Messr. Padfoot regarding his sneaky and suspicious behavior around his friends?”

And now it was out in the open. Sirius would clearly have been comfortable playing their little game for a while longer, but James seemed to want to bring the battle to him. How very Prongs of him. Not that that stopped Sirius from deflecting in the slightest. He was a natural at it. If he’d been the werewolf, Peter suspected they probably wouldn’t have found out until at least fifth year. 

“You’d want a confession for your prize? Wouldn’t you rather a confession of amour from darling Lily, then?”

“Come off it, Padfoot.”

“Come off what?” Sirius’ asked, an affected look of surprised innocence on his face. He resumed going through his books, sorting them one after another into his back with a forced deliberateness.

James shook his head frustratedly. He’d never been very much good at this sort of diplomacy. It was probably part of the reason he couldn’t stand Snape, who spoke almost entirely in vague metaphors.

“He’s forgiven you, Pads. We all have,” his voice dropped to an exasperated whisper as he sat down by Sirius, placing his hand on his shoulder. “Why are you still avoiding us?”

“I’m hardly avoiding you, Potter, you drama queen,” Sirius scoffed. But Peter could see the strain in the vaunted Black cheekbones now, the veins at the base of his neck bulging as they always did when agitation struck. “I spend almost every waking hour with you lads – honestly, if I spend any more time, people are going to start getting ideas, and your relationship with Evans is going to have to go through a very rocky start.” He waggled an admonishing finger in James’ face.

James, to his credit, managed to completely ignore Sirius’ diversion. He’d been getting better at this sort of stuff in the aftermath of the Snape affair, Peter reflected. Just a month ago, this would have tipped James over into a huffy angered fit at having been ignored so resolutely. He felt a quiet pride for his best friend’s growth.

“Are you going to keep lying to me, Pads?” He asked, quietly. He looked intensely at the back of Sirius’ head, which was suddenly turned away from him.

“I’m not lying,” Sirius said, but the insistence was weaker than before. There was an undertone of vulnerability in his words that had not been present before.

“Sirius…” James pleaded, “Don’t do this.”

Sirius’ head turned, and the fathomless black pools of his eyes found the hazel warmth of James. His demeanour crumbled.

“I can’t, James.” His voice was barely a whisper now.

James’ voice, on the other hand, seemed to grow stronger, emboldened by the victory. “Prongs, mate – it’s Prongs.” He put his arm around Sirius’ shoulders, drawing him close.

“I don’t think it can ever be Prongs again.” Sirius’ head ducked back downward. “Or Padfoot, or especially Moony. Or even Wormtail, that lucky little sod.” A tremor seemed to rush through his body and he shook. “Not after what I did.”

“He forgave you, Sirius.” James was steel, firm and unrelenting. “That means you’re alright – we’re alright again.”

“He didn’t want to forgive me.” Sirius’ said in a very small voice. He was ashamed, Peter realized.

“What?” James’ warmth was interrupted by genuine confusion.

“Remus doesn’t have a thimbleful of self-worth, and you know it.” Sirius pulled James’ arm off of his shoulders, standing up and facing away from his friend. Which, although he wasn’t aware of it, meant that he was now standing face to face with Peter, who could see the undisguised feelings on his face. Currently, they were surprisingly blank – but the tell-tale signs of tension were there. Sirius was trying to suppress his feelings. 

“He forgave me because you lot felt miserable without me around, and he didn’t want to be the reason we couldn’t be friends. Self-sacrificing bastard.” His lip quivered and a spasm ripped across his face before he could pull it back into its empty equilibrium. 

Nobody could see Sirius’ face. Why was he controlling it so avidly? Was he afraid he’d cry, and that the tear tracks would give him away? No, that didn’t make sense – though he was clearly struggling to master himself, his eyes were dry. He wasn’t about to cry. Then what was it?

Peter was observant, and he knew his friends well. But, of the three, he’d have to admit that Sirius was the one he understood least. James and Remus were both relatively simple people. James was fire – warm, bright, dramatic, and given to flaring up and down depending on the direction of the wind. Remus was earth – always reliably the same, unassuming, and deeper than any would give him credit for. Both of them thought that they understood the world and their place in it – James at the centre, Remus crouching and skulking at the peripheries. Both credited themselves with being more complex than they really were.

Not like Sirius. On the surface of things, Sirius was very simple, and very much like James – witty, engaging, and brilliant. But none of those things came as easily to Sirius as they did to James. For James, these traits were natural. They were the obvious consequence of a talented young child having been raised in a loving and nurturing household. For Sirius, they were defenses – a cloak meant to guard against the prying eyes of people who might have suspected something more to the story of the young Black. In other words, Sirius Black had always tried to appear a lot simpler than he really was.

None of his three friends were fooled, of course. Peter knew full well that everyone was very much aware of Sirius’ nightmares and the fits which hit him in his sleep. They knew also that he detested talk of home or of Slytherin, adamantly avoiding both at all opportunities. And, of late, they had learned of a capacity for cruelty and vengeance which they had all tried to pretend did not exist for the better part of a decade. It was not a cruelty that James, happy child from a happy home, could ever have possessed or understood.

But clearly, it was not a cruelty which had been enough to scare James away.

“Self sacrificing bastard?” James asked, incredulous. “And how exactly would you define the behavior of some sorry wanker, who – I don’t know – decided to avoid all of his best mates because he felt he hadn’t earned their forgiveness?”

Sirius turned, his head jerking violently toward James. From his voice, Peter suspected that James was on the receiving end of an angry glare. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh? Pray, do enlighten me.” Peter had to marvel at James’ insolence. He himself had never been brave enough to actively call out Sirius in one of his moods.

“I’m warning you.” Sirius clenched his fist and held it up threateningly in James’ direction.

“You going to pound me, Pads?” James raised an eyebrow in insincere amusement. “With that posh pianist’s hand? I don’t think I’ve seen you lift anything heavier than a schoolbag in my life.”

“Back off, Potter.”

“Make me.”

Sirius seemed to vibrate intensely for a second, and Peter was suddenly worried that he would actually strike James. But the dazzling energy vanished as quickly as it came, and his shoulders slumped. “I’m not getting into this.”

“Too bad.” James stood up and walked toward Sirius. “See, the thing is, Pads,” he raised his fist, “I’m quite ready for a fight.” 

He punched Sirius squarely in the chest, bowling him over. Peter blinked in astonishment. He certainly hadn’t expected that.

Sirius rallied quickly from the shock, rolling back onto his feet and sending his own punch flying toward James, who ducked beneath it. Not dismayed by his failure, Sirius continued to throw fist after fist in James’ direction. As one finally connected, Sirius let out an anguished yell.

James’ face brightened immediately. “Feel better?”

Sirius responded by pounding at him with his hands, sending the two of them rolling onto the floor until they were an indistinguishable pile of heads and limbs.

“Prongs,” the pile spoke. “When did you decide that punching someone to make them feel better was in the slightest bit a reasonable plan?”

“Well,” the pile replied victoriously, “it worked, didn’t it?”

The pile hmph-d indignantly, and Sirius extricated himself from the mess. “Maybe a little bit.”

“So,” James sat back up with a giddy smile on his face, “ready to talk now?” He straightened his glasses, which had been dangling dangerously askew on the end of his nose.

Sirius nodded. He cast his gaze around the room, looking everywhere but at James. James waved his hand cheerily at him. Grimacing, Sirius drew in a deep breath and steeled his shoulders. There was a pause. He gulped. Another pause. Finally, he spoke. 

His voice was the most doleful Peter had ever heard it. “I don’t deserve to be friends with any of you.”

James took the dreary proclamation in stride. “I think we’ll be the judges of that, thanks.”

Sirius gulped. A pause. Then, “You don’t get it. It’s exactly that.”

“That?”

“That. You’re all good enough to forgive me so easily. I’m not worth it.”

“Er – Pads, this may come as a shocker to you, but you are very much worth it.”

“I messed everything up, James.” There was a definite quiver in his voice now. If Sirius’ face had been turned toward him at that moment, Peter was sure his eyes would not still be dry.

“You did.” James nodded thoughtfully. “And I’m really not going to dispute that. You messed up, could have gotten Snape killed, and thrown Moony into a lot of trouble.”

“Yes. Don’t you understand yet?” There was a note of desperation in the question.

“I understand that you made a mistake and didn’t think of the fact that any of those things could have happened.”

“But they could have, James.”

“Lots of things could happen. It matters a lot less if you didn’t mean for them to, and you’re lucky enough that they don’t actually happen.”

“What if I do it again?” Sirius pleaded. He wanted to be told that he was wrong, Peter realized. That was what this whole thing was about – Sirius wanted James to rescue him.

“You won’t,” James said, sensibly.

“I might destroy you, next time.” Sirius’ whole body suddenly seemed frozen with tension. His fingers were drawn so tight that Peter feared they might snap. “What I did to Moony, it – it almost – it almost broke me, Prongs. Please, I don’t – I can’t take risks – I don’t know what will happen if I do that to you. I’m dangerous.” He winced, drawing into himself, looking as though he feared a sudden violent reprisal.

“Ah, but you forget, Pads,” James intoned wisely, “I’m indestructible.”

A note of irritation crept into Sirius’ voice. “Don’t joke now, James.”

“Sorry, sorry.” James’ chuckled good-naturedly. “But I’m really not joking, though.”

“I could destroy you. I could hurt you so very much.”

“Yeah, you could.” James agreed. “That’s part of the risk of being brothers.”

“Aren’t you worried? Scared?” There was the plea again.

“Nah. I trust you.”

“Just like that?” If Sirius sat any straighter his back would snap in two.

“You’re my best mate, Pads.” James ran his hand through his hair, a perplexed look on his face. “I really don’t know how to make it any clearer to you. I’d put my life in your hands if I could, honest.”

It was a very pure moment, Peter thought. A small part of him felt jealous – for all that James went on about having three best friends, it was only Sirius he would ever love this deeply. Peter would never be given such a deep trust. Peter would never have custody of James’ life, though he’d guard it so much more jealously and defensively than moody Sirius ever could.

“Yeah?” There was more colour in the one word than there had been in any of Sirius’ last few utterances. The tension seemed to be draining from him – his shoulders sagged, and his jaw relaxed as it emptied from his body.

“Yeah.” James got up and extended a hand to his friend.

Peter had seen enough to understand, now. He didn’t think anything particularly interesting was yet to come. It had definitely been a learning experience. No doubt James would want some counsel on Sirius in the future – though he would probably be vague about it, so as to protect the latter’s confidentiality. 

No matter, Peter thought. He’d gleaned enough insight to rise to the occasion and give James exactly the help he’d need. And then, he reflected happily, James would remember once again that he was indispensable and just as important as the other two, even if he hadn’t been as crucial to recent events as they had.

He still had the Cloak for a while longer before James would notice. Perhaps Mary would still be in the Common Room. As James embraced Sirius, Peter crept back down the stairs.

**Author's Note:**

> Would love any reviews or comments! :)


End file.
